Free hunting days coming up

The first full weekend of September is traditionally Free Hunting Days in Oklahoma. This year, on Sept. 2-3, Oklahoma residents can get outdoors to pursue game in season without the need to carry a state hunting license.

These free days also provide a perfect chance for current hunters to gather up some folks who have never been hunting and give them an experience that might open a door for them, as well as help continue a time-honored American tradition.

This year, open hunting seasons during Free Hunting Days include dove, squirrel, coyote, raccoon, beaver, striped skunk, prairie dog, rail and gallinule. State Game Wardens will not check for state hunting licenses for residents on those days.

Game Wardens will be on duty as usual to ensure compliance with bag limits, shooting hours, shotgun plugs, hunter education requirements, special area regulations, and other general regulations that are published in the Oklahoma Fishing and Hunting Regulations. The regulations are available online at www.wildlifedepartment.com, in the free Go Outdoors Oklahoma mobile app for Apple or Android, or in print free at license dealers statewide.

Get licenses online — It’s easier than ever to get your Hunting license for opening day at the Wildlife Department’s new Go Outdoors Oklahoma online licensing system. Using a computer or a mobile device, dove hunters are now able to buy hunting licenses and get a HIP permit immediately at license.GoOutdoorsOklahoma.com. The licenses and permits are delivered via email to the hunter, and the electronic versions are now valid proof for license holders in the field.

The easiest way to interact with the Department is to download the free Go Outdoors Oklahoma mobile app, available for Apple and Android devices. Experience new customer service features allowing customers to purchase, access and store license information, no matter where they are. The app is also a legal means of carrying licenses in the field. And hunters are able to complete e-check forms through the app, regardless if there is a cellular connection. The app automatically syncs when cellular service returns.

The mobile app also provides handy access to the hunting and fishing regulations guide, wildlife management area information and maps, and even access to the online hunter education certification course.

All sportsmen and sportswomen – especially lifetime license holders and returning customers – should sign in to the Go Outdoors Oklahoma online system to update their information and complete their profile setup. New users are invited to create a profile.

HIP survey needed for migratory birds — All migratory game bird hunters, including lifetime license holders, who hunt migratory birds, must obtain, complete and carry a Harvest Information Program (HIP) permit while hunting migratory birds. Additionally, anyone hunting sandhill cranes is also required to obtain a Sandhill Crane Permit (SHC).

Both of these permits are federal permits, free of charge, and can be obtained on the ODWC app.

These permits provide a method by which the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation (ODWC) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) obtain the names and addresses of all migratory game bird hunters required to obtain the permits. From these lists, a sample of Oklahoma hunters are sent a federal harvest survey questionnaire so that reliable estimates of the number of all migratory birds harvested in the state and throughout the country are possible. These estimates give biologists the information they need to make sound decisions concerning hunting seasons, bag limits, and population management.

The HIP program began in 1999, replacing a program that only surveyed hunters who bought a Federal Duck Stamp. Without good estimates of the harvest of migratory game birds, continuation of hunting seasons on these species is jeopardized. Scientifically sound and defensible estimates of harvest are essential to maintain harvest opportunity for the future.

Hunters under 16 years of age, senior citizens (age 64 or older or those who turn 64 during the calendar year in which they intend to hunt migratory birds) and landowners hunting only on their own property are exempt from the HIP permit requirements.

All sandhill crane hunters must obtain the SHC permit, no exemptions.